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Make way for air-powered cars--maybe

1 of 4A shot of the AIRPod gassing up - or airing up, to be more precise.

Photo by MDI

2 of 4The AIRPod's maker claims 1.5 minute refueling and a 125 mile range on a tank of compressed air.

Photo by MDI

3 of 4Indian automaker Tata is testing MDI's pneumatic motor technology in a handful of its vehicles.

Photo by MDI

4 of 4Only time will tell if the AIRPod or similar air-powered vehicles evolve into viable transportation options.

Photo by MDI

If the phrase “air-powered car” conjures up mental images of bizarre, conservation-of-energy-violating vehicles powered by rooftop windmills, don't worry--you're not alone. The concept of a car powered by nothing but air ranks right up there with the fabled water-burning carburetor supposedly kept locked away by the oil companies.

In truth, however, pneumatic engines have been used to power everything from airplanes to locomotives to horseless carriages since the mid-19th century, although their relatively low efficiencies have prevented widespread adoption of the technology.

That might change with the advent of the AIRPod. Developed by the Luxembourg-based MDI Enterprises, the AIRPod could receive a boost if India's Tata Motors successfully puts its technology into mass production. At the moment, the fate of the whole enterprise seems to be up in the air (sorry, we couldn't resist), but the concept is enough to get us thinking about the possibilities of modern air-powered vehicles.

The AIRPod itself may not represent our ideal ride, but--on paper, at least--it seems to compete fairly well with today's crop of electric vehicles. True, the125-miles-per-tank figure advanced by the AIRPod's creators seems a bit optimistic, but even a 50-mile range would make the AIRPod well-equipped to handle the average American commute. Better yet, a quick, 1.5-minute refill at a compressed-air station could blow away the relatively slow charging times of electric vehicles.

Of course, we'd flip around the car's Reliant Robin-esque layout and give it something along the lines of the Morgan 3 Wheeler--the increase in stability might allow the design to swap those two tiny front wheels for one large rear wheel, making it a true trike. And the goofy styling must go, unless there's an unwritten rule about oddly designed alternative-power vehicles.

Like many “revolutionary” new cars, the AIRPod has yet to deliver on the promises made by its promoters, but advances in lightweight composite technology may only make quirky cars like the AIRPod more feasible going forward. For example, air-storage capacity--and thus vehicle range--might be increased by the development of stronger, lighter composite tanks.

Will we be seeing AIRPods and other pneumatic commuter scooters puttering down America's superhighways in the near future? We're not holding our breath. Still, we're glad offbeat technology like this is receiving renewed attention.

Graham Kozak
- Graham Kozak drove a 1951 Packard 200 sedan in high school because he wanted something that would be easy to find in a parking lot. He thinks all the things they're doing with fuel injection and seatbelts these days are pretty nifty too.
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